Method of and apparatus for applying ornamental piping



April 18, 1950 s. ALPER 2,504,614

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR APPLYING ORNAMENTAL PIPING Filed Jan. 12, 1949 Patented Apr. 18, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR APPLYING ORNAMENTAL PIPING Samuel Alper, Lynn, Mass.

Application January 12, 1949, Serial No. 70,416

1 Claim. 1

My present invention relates to piping or the like ornamental material intended particularly for use in the making, trimming, and ornamenting of shoe uppers. shoe straps, or shoe parts although the invention is capable of use in applying such ornamental piping to clothing, wearing apparel, and furniture or automobile upholstery, or the like.

My invention also includes a novel method of feeding, positioning, and applying pressure substantially as a simultaneous operation or in the immediate sequence of action by means of a novel device consisting in a roller member and an adjustable piping guide attached thereto and cooperating with my novel mold or form in which piping with a pressure-sensitive coating is applied to the article or part to be piped.

Such a feeding and pressure-applying roller is desirable and important for speedy operation although it is not entirely essential to the carry ing out of my present method of applying piping to a part or article to be piped.

Heretofore, it has been customary to apply the usual ornamental piping strips by a hand operation, the operator pressing progressively the piping onto the article to which it is to be attached, such piping being usually coated on one side with a pressure-sensitive adhesive.

Thus, the operator relied upon skill and judgment to progressively apply the piping strip with more or less of the marginal edge to be positioned for visual ornamentation, and such hand method, of course, resulted in uneven marginal fitting on the article on which the piping was being laid.

Such hand Work was particularly difficult where shoe uppers or shoe parts were being fitted with the ornamental piping, as such parts to be piped and uppers had variable contours and, therefore, it was extremely difiicult to have the marginal display desired in any uniform, accurate, or predetermined position.

i In addition to the customary hand method above briefly outlined, it has also heretofore been customary in some establishments to use a machine which is modeled after a typical sewing machine only with a double presser foot, which foot, having a four-motion feed known as a double walking feed would tend to aid the operator to move the part to be piped along during the successive pressure-applying actions of the feed members. This machine operation, however, also required highly skilled operators for a reasonably satisfactory result, and it was 2 especially difficult to apply the piping properly around sharp corners and curves.

My present invention enables this work to be done more accurately, more easily, and quicker than formerly, and by unskilled operator, thus greatly simplifying this heretofore difficult operation and resulting in a more uniform product and with economy of manufacture.

In carrying out my invention, I provide a mold or die which may be formed of cardboard or an'yother suitable material, preferably utilizing two or more layers of such material by cutting out a channel or opening thru one or more top layers of the desired width, length, and contour; and thereupon uniting the same to the uncut lower layer, thus leaving an open channel into which the shoe part is laid and on which the piping is fitted.

The operator is enabled to apply the ornamental piping quickly and accurately by pressing the same onto the part to be piped and within the walls of the mold or die. Also, extremely intricate ogee or involved curved parts can thus be made, the cut-out portion of the die corresponding thereto, and the piping quickly applied to the part or parts to be piped.

A further feature of my present method consists in the provision of means which will predetermine the extent of the projecting edge portion of the piping, which latter has heretofore been effected solely by guesswork or the skill of the operator when applying the piping either by hand or machine. Thus, by my invention, I predetermine the projecting edge of the ornamental piping and also greatly facilitate the action of turning the ornamental piping around points, ends, curves, or other parts of a desired design, as well as expediting such work where straight sections are to be piped.

This is particularly important in connection with the application of piping on shoe parts or other parts or portions of any article which is to be iped, wherein speed, accuracy, and economy of manufacture are most important and a uniformity in the appearance of the piping, as well as the extent of the projecting edge of the same, is desired.

A further important feature consists in the construction, arrangement, and operation of my novel feeding and pressure-applying roller, which can be advantageously employed in cooperation with the mold or die above referred to, although the roller may be employed inde pendently of the mold or die if desired. This roller is provided with a guide which may be in- 3 terchangeably or adjustably formed to cooperate with the piping of diiferent widths, styles, and thicknesses, and whether or not the piping is made of various types of synthetic plastic, textile, or other material.

It is believed that my method of applying piping by utilizing a mold or die is a distinct novelty in this art. It is also believed that my novel pressure applying roller for use on adhesively sensitive coated piping either individually or in cooperation with the mold or die is a distinct novelty and I wish to claim both the method and the apparatus used therewith inthis application.

Referring to the drawings illustrating a preferred apparatus and my novel method of carrying out the present invention in connection therewith:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view of a suitable mold or die of any desired material, such for example as paper or cardboard, or other suitable material, having a recess formed in one surface following the convolutions of the part or article to receive the ornamental piping;

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional View on the line 2-2 of Fig. i. on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the piping as applied to any desired shoe part.

As shown in the drawings, a suitable sheet of material i has superimposed thereon a second layer '2, which top layer has a cut-out design of I have illustrated in Fig. 1', a convolute form of a shoe strap 5 and the opening 3 corresponding thereto in length, width, and contour, the recess being of greater depth than the thickness of the strap 5. I may make this cut-out with a marginal edge or shoulder, as indicated at 6, preferably by utilizing a third layer 4, as shown in Fig. 2, at a position in the depth of the cut-out opening 3 to substantially register with the thickness of the strap 5.

Thereupon, the part is fitted andpressed intothe opening 3', and the piping to be applied thereto is fitted therein. with the edge of the piping resting on the shoulder 6, which thereby predetermines the extent to which the piping will project from the part 5 and, hence, the degree of visual ornamentation afforded thereby.

A suitable piping HI comprises a folded edge [2, which is intended to show and project from the part 5 or other part of the shoe to which the piping is applied, and this folded edge is laid over the shoulder 5 and fitted progressively along the length of the part 5, following the convolutions. of the recess 3 andrelying on the walls of the recess to constitute a gauge or guide, thus accurately, quickly, and economically positioning the piping in desired relationship with the edge of the part.

If no shoulder 6 is desired, the operator relies on the straight walls of the recess 3 against which to guide the edge [2 of the piping l0. Usually this piping comprises a strip of suitable other-- mental colored material, having its folded edge I 2 for view in the finished shoe, and with the inner edge surface pinked, slashed, or raw-edged, as indicated at M. By way of example, a pinked edge is shown in the drawings which facilitates the fitting of the piping around curves, either convex or concave.

Thus the operator placing the part 5 in the recess 3', which is of similar contour, thereupon will start to apply the piping at one end, such for example as I5, viewing Fig. 1, pressing the folded edge l2 against the walls of the recess 3 or upon the shoulder 6 and the adjacent vertical portion of the wall of the recess, following the contour of the same until reaching the opposite end, here shown as a point 20; whereupon the piping is doubled back and pressed down the remaining length of the recess to permit both edges to be equipped with an ornamental piping, as in the type of shoe part illustrated.

. This piping is coated with a pressure-adhesive surface which readily adheres to the part 5 during, the applying process. Thereupon, the action of uniting the piping more firmly to the backing, and: smoothing out the same is effected in any desired. manner such, for example, as a roller 2! having a handle 22 with a forked bail 24 engaging an axle passing thru the roller and the ends of the ball 24, as illustrated in Fig. 2.

The piping I 0 may be united to a shoe part, as

indicated at 3i and stitching 3| applied to complete the same, with the folded edge l2 exposed to view for trim and ornamentation.

Thus it will be appreciated that the operation of applying an ornamental piping to a shoe strap or other shoe parts is changed from a matter of guesswork on behalf of the operator to an accurate and uniform operation, wherein the positioning of the edge of the piping relatively to the part on which it is laid is secured by my invention utilizing a simple die or mold.

Thus, the operator is permitted to apply the piping in contact with the walls of the recess forming the mould and, preferably, in accordancewith the predetermined design accorded by the shoulder on the mould upon which the piping rests during the operation.

Furthermore, this desirable and advantageous feature can be readily accomplished without skilled labor and greatly speeds up the work,.while insuring accuracy of the same. The cutting-out of designs, particularly where separate layers l 2, and 4 are employed for the mould or die apparatus, is easily effected and the expense incident to same is relatively trivial.

I claim:

Apparatus of the kind described for uniting piping to a part" to be piped, said piping having one edge folded and the opposite edge pinked, slashed, or raw-edged, which consists in providing a mold having a predetermined depth, width, and

contour to receive the shoe part to which the No references cited. 

